Peter's Blog

Note From Peter:      Here’s is a copy of the email that went out to all folks on the mailing list for the symposium. It gives you links to the Whova App as well as to the Facebook page where we will be presenting the Livestream on Monday and Tuesday. You can download the app even if you’re not coming to the symposium, and it has the full schedule…Read More…

Hi Everyone, By this time next week we will be wrapping up the first Johnson & Wales University International Symposium on Bread. But, as I write this, we’re still in the final stages of preparation, tweaking the logistics, the audio visual systems, the meals, and the special features that we believe will make this a very special gathering. By the end of this week I should have the log-on for…Read More…

Note from Peter: We’ve been loving the contributions of John Arena here on Pizza Quest for the past four years. He not only is a mentor to many, and an educator, but his columns on what pizzeria operators need to know can serve as a master template for everyone in the business. Since most of you already all of this, I’ll let the following interview fill in the gaps and…Read More…

Note from Peter: I met Brigit Binns in the Fall of 2015 when we were both featured presenters at the “Forno Bravo Wood-Fire Expo” in Salinas California (you will see her featured in some of our upcoming video webisodes over the next few months). Her food was (and is) amazing, and she and her husband, Casey, made an an amazing team at the Expo, bringing his theatrical background and her…Read More…

Hi Everyone, Just a short post this week to let everyone know that On The Rise: The 2017 Johnson & Wales International Symposium on Bread, presented by Puratos, has completely sold out and we now have a waiting list of 25 people!  I just want to thank all of you for helping to spread the word and, if any of you reading this are coming the Symposium on May 22nd…Read More…

I just got back from what I think is, like, the 32nd annual International Pizza Expo in Las Vegas (or is it 23 — anyone know?). There may have been either 22 or 31 of these before but this was my first, and you know what they say about the first time….yes, it was memorable! Pete LaChapelle, the publisher of Pizza Today Magazine, and the organizer of this event, told…Read More…

To all my fellow bread-heads, I want to share this link to a major event I’ve organized in Charlotte, NC on May 22-23. It’s called, “On the Rise: The Johnson & Wales University International Symposium on Bread.”  The theme of the symposium is “The Future of Bread,” and we will be featuring 10 internationally important experts on all facets of bread. Some of the speakers include Chad Robertson, of Tartine…Read More…

Every New Yorker claims to know where to find the best slice in the city. They argue about it as if it were a question with a definite answer. And even if a real answer existed, confirming its legitimacy would require tasting every single slice in town. Enter Colin Hagendorf, the only man who can truly claim to have explored the depths in search of New York’s best slice. Between…Read More…

Note from Peter:  A few months ago I received an e-mail from Steve Marquez, who you will meet below, correcting my spelling of the word “chile,” as in chile pepper (and not as in chili con carne, which was my error). He was right, of course, and I could see he was really passionate and deeply connected to his beloved Colorado and New Mexico chile (and not chiles — it…Read More…

A few years ago A fellow named Andris Lagsdin wrote to me here at Pizza Quest to introduce himself and to tell me about a tool he had developed called The Baking Steel. I was skeptical that it would work as well as he promised but he offered to send me one, and also one for Brad English, to play around with. Needless to say, we both loved the Steel…Read More…